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Publisher's Description

Jesus is Marys son and Jesus is the Son of God. The God of the universe hand picked Mary to raise His Son!

Mary was there the day Jesus was born and she was there the day he was crucified. Her story is deep and rich and has myriad lessons for any womanmothers, daughters, sisters, friends.

Marys story reveals that a womans heart is important to the Father.

When God selected Mary, Hickem says, He was looking for heart. God set out to find the precise woman who would give her heart to Him, completely and wholly. He wanted a woman with whom He could entrust His perfect Son. This was going to be no ordinary woman.

Heaven in Her Arms will touch your heart if you are facing fear and uncertainty, wondering about leaving your plans behind, feeling a need for community and the support of other women, or wanting to deepen your life of faith.

Hickem reflects on Marys story and offers practical applications, as well as inspiring real-life stories from contemporary women. With a six-week Bible study for individuals or small groups, Heaven in Her Arms shows the life of faith Mary exemplified and Gods tender heart for His daughters.

The subtitle of this book is Why God Chose Mary to Raise His Son and What It Means to You. When I first chose to read this book I have to admit I went in with some trepidation. Was it going to be a book of worship of Mary, the Mother of Jesus? Was it going to focus on glorifying her? I was pleasantly surprised that when I finished reading it, I not only had a better sense of who Mary was, but I also found myself glorifying God the Father, not Mary :) This is a wonderful book for anyone to read, but as a mother myself, I found it particularly relevant. It made me relate to the issues I have as a parent, the emotions. I loved this book!

One of the single most fascinating people of the Bible, to me, is Mary, the mother of Jesus. In different seasons of my life, I have thought about her life, her heart, and her willingness to forsake everything in order to partake in the plan God had for her life. Catherine Hickem's book, Heaven in Her Arms is a fantastic, intimate look at the life and heart of Mary. Hickem takes her readers on a journey, to the very heart of who Mary was. We see early on, that God chose Mary as participant in his plan of Salvation based not on lofty heritage, but based on the righteous condition of her heart. I deeply appreciate the eloquent way in which this book examines Mary's response to the angel's news that she was to give birth to the Son of God. She was not without fear or questions- in fact, she was very honest about both of those things. But, her fear did not consume her and her questions were an honest response to quite shocking news. I agree with the author when she writes that she is grateful that Mary asked God questions. "She was able to quickly comprehend the situation she was in and authentically put her concerns before God." Oh, that I am able to do that in difficult situations, as well! It is through asking God honest questions that we authenticate our relationship with Him, seeking deeper truths about who God is. The book continues to examine every aspect of Mary as the mother of Jesus, including the facts that Mary knew being a mother would be difficult, she knew to be there when things got tough, she would have to let her Son fulfill his purpose, she knew to stay connected and she knew to be a woman of prayer.

Every aspect of Mary's life that Hickem writes in this book is directly applicable to moms today. Sure, the times are vastly different, but many things remain the same. This book spoke directly to my new mommy heart, and both challenged and comforted me on this journey. Each chapter helped me to look at my relationship with my own mother in a different light, as well as my newest role as a mother to my little girl. Raising children is a difficult task, that's for sure. But somethings are just as true today as they were when Mary received the life- and world- changing news that she was to bring the Savior into this world. I honestly didn't expect to get so much practical advice and insight from this book as I did. I initially thought it would be more of an exegetical look at the scriptures involving Mary. What a wonderful surprise it was to be so blessed and challenged through reading this! I'd give this book 4 out of 5 stars- a good read!

Mary's relationship with God and Jesus. Raising Jesus as a little boy to the man He was. Catherine is kinda expert when it talks about motherhood. The book no just talks about being Mary's mother to Jesus but, it talks about why God do choose Mary to bear our Saviour! It shows the intimacy with which God longs to participate in the life of a mother. It shows the intimacy with which God longs to participate in the life of a mother... speaks about how we need to look at Mary as a parenting example and how the Lord has given us the privilege of our children to lead us closer to Him. Every mother should read this. I recommend this not just to mothers but to every Christian as well.

"God has met me in those difficult places and has answered prayers few thought He would answer. Sometimes He made me wait until He had put all the pieces in place so He could give me His best answer. Sometimes He has said no when I made a request, but only because He had a better yes in store."

The rare chance that there were few minutes of alertness after a full day's of travel on deputation have been spent reading, "Heaven in Her Arms: Why God Chose Mary to Raise His Son and What It Means for You" by Catherine Hickem. The book proved to be, in a very real, Scriptural based manner, an in depth study of the life of Mary, from the very first glimpse of her in the Bible as the angel Gabriel gives her the great news of her privilege to carry God manifested in the flesh: the Savior the world had longed for, to the very last mention of her as she waits in the Upper Room to be filled with the Holy Ghost alongside Jesus' disciples. Not only does Hickem give great insight into Mary's life, she also relates these â€˜life principles' to all women and mothers today.

I throughly enjoyed this book, an â€˜easy read' that is filled with honest confrontation of issues in our world today as well as experiences that Hickem has personally experienced as a psychotherapist. The study guide in the back of "Heaven in Her Arms" would make this volume a wonderful choice for a ladies' group, book club, or prayer team as it is an outstanding reference on parenting and womanhood. I wholeheartedly recommend this to all women, married or single, with a few reservations: there are a few underlying implications of the trinity and a "sinner's prayer". As my IBC professors would say, "Eat the meat and spit out the bones:" there are so many succulent, meaty things in this book-eat up but don't choke!

(I received this book free from Booksneeze.com, required only to write my honest opinion, be it positive or otherwise.)

Heaven in Her Arms: Why God Chose Mary to Raise His Son and What it Means for You is written by Catherine Hickem, a licensed psychotherapist, an author, speaker, coach, and counselor with years of experience. This non-fiction story is a look into the heart and life of Mary. Why exactly did God choose Mary to be the mother to His son? Did she share the same anxiety and fears that any other mother faces? How did she deal with those fears and anxiety? All of these questions (and more) are presented in this book. By looking at how Mary dealt with her fears and insecurity we can learn how to emulate her and to develop our own close relationship with the Lord. Heaven in Her Arms is absolutely fantastic for any mother or mother-to-be.

I initially chose this book because its synopsis stated things that I was currently dealing with and knew I would be feeling as we made a big move and career change. "Heaven in Her Arms will touch your heart if you are facing fear and uncertainty, wondering about leaving your plans behind, feeling a need for community and the support of other women, or wanting to deepen your life of faith." But after reading the book, I felt my expectations fell somewhat flat. I didn't really think that it did as this quote promised. It was a good book despite that fact, but just not what I was hoping to get out of it.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255